Everybody Dies
by The Lost Writer's Soul
Summary: This is River's point of view from Forest of the Dead. These were her very last moments alive... What was she thinking? This does have a slightly tweaked ending. I loved their relationship, and i would have loved to see this as the ending. One-Shot Complete. Please Review so i can become a better writer.


I know it has been a while since I have wrote… College has gotten the best of me. I hope though that you enjoy this story, and that it will be one that you will reread if you like it. The italicized parts are River thinking. I would just like to remind everyone that I do not own Doctor Who, though I do own a lot of Doctor Who merchandise. Enjoy.

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Everyone dies.

After living for so long, River didn't think it this would be the end for her. Not here, without her Doctor. She was longing for his touch as she sat in that chair, hooked up to the machine. For a moment, it reminded her of a hospital with so many wires. She glanced at her knocked out husband on the floor, looking younger than ever before.

She wondered how this man, daft and old with converses and 3D glasses, would become her bowtie loving husband. She knew that she would never get to see it.

River hooked up the suction cups to her skin, glancing at the countdown. 3 minutes. The machine was done; she was hooked into the system, ready to be saved. She took a deep breath, and was hit with a thought. This meant that he had always known. She was always going to die here. Every kiss they had, every hug, special moments, the laughs, the crying, through all of it, he knew. It probably killed him every time he saw her. She looked back over her life. The expressions he gave her whenever she mentioned that he was going to be the death of her now became clear. Her poor sweetie.

The younger doctor stirred, rubbing his head. "Oh no no. What are you doing? That's my job!" He yelled, pulling against the handcuffs.

River laughed lightly. Time to start the acting. She took a deep breath. "Oh and I'm not allowed to have a career I suppose." She started messing with the cords, just as a distraction.

The Doctor strained ever more against the handcuffs. His eyes looked desperate. "Why am I handcuffed? Why do you even have handcuffs?" His eyes darted from the handcuffs back to her.

Her words caught in her throat. She thought for a second, and decided on the one word that would describe their entire life together. "Spoilers." She said, putting on a smile that would convey everything.

He was starting to get angry, trying to get out even harder. "This is not a joke, stop this now, this is gonna kill you! I'd have a chance, you don't have any."

River groaned, feeling like slapping him. He always had to try to be the one to save everyone. "You wouldn't have a chance, and neither do I. I'm timing it for the end of the countdown, there'll be a blip in the command flow. That way it should improve our chances of a clean download." She tried to not choke up while she was saying it. _This was her end. She was saving her husband._

He pleaded with her, now trying a different strategy. "River! Please! No!"

She smiled, wishing that her Doctor, her husband, were here. He may not have understood either though. If this was a fixed event, she had to make sure that her death would happen. Fixed points in time could be created. She decided to tell him about the last thing they did together. So he could let her go properly. "Funny thing is, this means you've always known how I was going to die. All the time we've been together, you knew I was coming here. The last time I saw you, the real you, the future you, I mean - you turned up on my doorstep, with a new haircut and a suit. You took me to Darillium to see the singing towers. Oh, what a night that was! The towers sang, and you cried." She wiped away a tear. _Oh, please don't cry…_

The computer sprang to life, a mechanical voice emitting from it. "Autodestuct in one minute."

She glanced at it, sighing out loud. The countdown seemed to quicken up. She turned again to face her husband, desperation showing on her face. "You wouldn't tell me why, but I suppose you knew it was time." She tried to get her point across. _Please._ "My time. Time to come to the Library. You even gave me your screwdriver - that should've been a clue." She choked up.

The Doctor's eyes lit up. He glanced quickly at the screwdriver sitting on her diary. She knew what he was going to try to do. First he would unlock the handcuffs. Then, he would shut off the countdown. But, River was smarter than that. She paced the steps from him to the diary. He reached for it, scrambling to get free. Her heart quickened multiple times when he had almost touched the tip. The light in his eyes died as quickly as it lit.

She shook her head quickly, another tear falling. "There's nothing you can do." She fidgeted again. The countdown was at thirty seconds now.

The Doctor decided to change his approach. He tilted his head and sighed loudly. "You can let me do this!" he whispered. He was still struggling against the handcuffs, but now not with as much force.

River rolled her eyes. He wasn't getting it. This must be a fixed point in time. There was no way out. Not this time. "If you die here, it'll mean I've never met you." She desperately explained. _Come on you daft man. Please understand. You can't die here. I wont allow it._

"Time can be rewritten." He said, suddenly understanding. The Doctor struggled once more, trying to convince both of them, even though they knew the truth. This was her end. He glanced at the computer. 15 seconds.

River felt a sudden anger at those words. All of the times she had mentioned those exact words to him, he had replied with never. Now she knew why, and that she had to do the same. "Not those times. Not one line! Don't you dare!" She paused, thinking of what to say next, "It's OK. It's OK, it's not over for you. You'll see me again. You've got all of that to come. You and me, time and space. You watch us run!" She smiled sadly at him, and then glanced at the time. Eleven seconds to go. Another tear ran down her cheek.

"River, you know my name!" The Doctor shouted, his heart leaping from his chest. There was only one way she could have known, and they both knew it. He was loosing another person who was, or would be, close to him. She would become important to him.

"Autodestruct in ten..." The computer interrupted.

"You whispered my name in my ear." He said sadly. He knew that no matter what, he wouldn't be able to save her. Not now. Why hadn't his future self come up with a way to make sure she was safe?

The computer cut in again, continuing the countdown. "...nine, eight, seven..."

River looked at the Doctor, and realized that he was hers. No matter what face, he was always her husband. He may not know it, but that mark was still there. She drunk in the site of his face, and wished she could touch him. Ensure to him that all of the things that were about to come, Jim the Fish, Devils Run, and even their everlasting battle against the angels, would never break them apart. His first was her last…

"There's only one reason I would ever tell anyone my name. There's only one time I could..." The Doctor, Her Doctor, whispered, defeat in his eyes.

"Hush, now! Spoilers..." River said through the river of tears streaming down her face. She smiled at him, remembering all of those adventures. She glanced at the screen of the countdown. When it hit one, she thought to herself something she couldn't say aloud.

_**Goodbye Sweetie.**_

* * *

She plunged the two cords together, creating the clean download that she needed. When the plugs hit, all she saw was her Doctor, with his bowtie and fez, standing in front of her. He was surrounded by white light, and looked like an angel. The daft illusion reached out and said to her, "It isn't goodbye yet."

When he took her hand she realized that the illusion was real. It was really her Doctor. He pulled her in close, kissing her with all of the passion he could muster. It was his last goodbye to her.

She opened her eyes and saw the little tiny town of the Library, with the clear skies.

Still holding her was the Doctor. It was the one that she had grown to love, the one that was always there for her. He always came when she called.

"How can you be here?" she asked, her eyes wide with shock.

"There is an old type of timelord trick. Its something that many people would kill for if they knew that it existed. It has many different names, but to be quite honest I cannot pronounce many of them. The gist of it is that when you find the love of your life, you develop a sort of presence. This presence allows you to, basically, dream walk. I tweaked it a little bit so that I could access Cal, and be able to see you again. So that when I am dreaming and you are awake, we can still be together. It will feel real for both of us," he touched her face lightly, to show her what he meant, "and when we both go to sleep here, I will wake up."

He kissed her forehead lightly, and said, "Basically, you will never be alone again."

River smiled softly and replied, "I like the sound of that."

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The End.

Thank you, Kind readers, for reading this story and many of my other ones if you have. I know that I am a tough author to follow, and I hope that this story is one that you have enjoyed. Please leave a review so I can become a better writer.

-The Lost Writer's Soul


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